Growing awareness of the importance of soil health means that microbes are on the minds of even the most casual gardeners. After all, anyone who has ever attempted to plant a thriving patch of flowers or vegetables knows that what you grow is only as good as the soil you grow it in. It is possible to create and maintain rich, dark, crumbly soil that’s teeming with life, using very few inputs and a no-till, no-fertilizer approach. Certified permaculture designer and lifelong gardener Diane Miessler presents the science of soil health in an engaging, entertaining voice geared for the backyard grower. She shares the techniques she has used — including cover crops, constant mulching, and a simple-but-supercharged recipe for compost tea — to transform her own landscape from a roadside dump for broken asphalt to a garden that stops traffic, starting from the ground up.
Diane Miessler is the author ofGrow Your Soil!She is a certified permaculture designer, a soil science enthusiast, and a gardener with more than 50 years of experience. She has a monthly column inThe Union, a newspaper that serves Nevada County, California.
Dr. Elaine Inghamdiscovered the soil food web nearly 4 decades ago and has been pioneering research ever since. Widely recognized as the world’s foremost soil biologist, she’s passionate about empowering ordinary people to bring the soils in their community back to life.
Foreword by Elaine R. Ingham
Beauty, Magic & Tomatoes: Why I Garden, and How the Soil Food Web Helps
10 Suggestions for Creating Healthy, Living Soil
Making Soil: Building a "House"
1 The Skinny on Soil: What Makes Soil Good & How Does It Get That Way? What Is Soil?
What Makes Good Soil Good?
What Good Is Good Soil?
2 Building a House: Start with the Roof (Mulch & Cover Crops)&lóP
![Grow Your Soil! : Harness the Power of Microbes to Create Your Best Garden Ever [Paperback]](/itemImage/2/4/1/6/2_4267019.jpg "Grow Your Soil! : Harness the Power of Microbes to Create Your Best Garden Ever [Paperback]")